TWC Presents Akron Regional Science Olympiad at the University of Akron

March 31, 2015 - Rubber band powered planes, bottle rockets and model bridges are just a few of the 46 contests that made up a whirlwind day of SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING and MATH (STEM) at the University of Akron’s (UA) Regional Science Olympiad, presented by Time Warner Cable (TWC).

Hosted by UA’s Akron Global Polymer Academy and funded by a gift from Time Warner Cable, the Science Olympiad is a national competition akin to academic track meets for middle school and high school students. Each year, events are rotated to reflect the ever-changing nature of genetics, earth science, chemistry, anatomy, physics, geology, mechanical engineering and technology. By combining events from all disciplines, Science Olympiad encourages students to investigate a wide cross-section of scientific endeavors. Emphasis is placed on active, hands-on group participation.

“Science and its related disciplines are increasingly essential to future careers, as well as the economic viability and competitiveness of the United States,” said John Fellenstein, content specialist in UA’s Akron Global Polymer Academy. “For nearly two decades, the university has been pleased for the opportunity to host this event, and as a former science teacher, I always enjoy the enthusiasm of the participants — and awakening within them a real interest in pursuing these critical subjects.”

More than 575 students from 33 schools convened on the University of Akron campus prepared to take part in fun and challenging contests with names such as Mission Possible, Wright Stuff, Disease Detectives, Crave the Wave and Can’t Judge a Powder. For most students, however, preparing for the Olympiad began months ago with the building of a device or the designing of a project. An example of these “build” events was Air Trajectory. Students built and tested a device that used a falling weight to compress a column of air. The pressure from the compressed air was then used to propel a plastic golf ball to a pre-determined distance (between 2-8 meters). Points were earned for the team that could land their golf ball closest to the determined distance. 800 Northeast Ohio residents attended the University of Akron Science Olympiad to cheer on their friends and loved ones.

TWC had great branding at this event, had more than 25 employee volunteers and staffed an engaging and hand-on CAMM booth. The booth featured cable splicing where visitors could splice their own coax cable, apply fittings and create their own coax cable bracelet or necklace, an Ethernet cable activity where visitors could take disassemble CAT5 (Ethernet) cable to understand how wiring comes into the home and cool giveaway items.

The event was a great fit with TWC’s Connect a Million Minds (CAMM) program, as it focused on hands-on STEM activities and the vast attendance made this a great opportunity to inform visitors that TWC is a creative, committed local corporate citizen dedicated to preparing the next generation of problem solvers in our community.

To learn more about Connect a Million Minds, please visit www.connectamillionminds.com.